23 September 2005

Control Valve

The translators knew so many languages that at a recent conference the first day was taken up deciding which language would be the official language of the conference. For the next few days many of the translators griped that the conference had ignored their own particular favorite language. During a presentation on the sensitive issue of translating taboo words, several of the translators got into a fist fight. Words in several languages were exchanged. Blood flowed. When it was over the conference’s transcriber asked the pugilists to restage the melee so she could record an accurate description of the event.